


all the small things

by loading_username



Series: eccentric superhero boyfriends [18]
Category: Batman (Movies - Nolan), Iron Man (Movies)
Genre: Bruce Wayne Whump, Canon - Movie, Caretaking, Common Cold, Crossover, Crossover Pairings, Cuddling & Snuggling, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Forehead Kisses, Hurt/Comfort, Light-Hearted, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Phone Calls & Telephones, Protective Tony Stark, Sick Bruce Wayne, Sickfic, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-07 19:13:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26592709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loading_username/pseuds/loading_username
Summary: Bruce is sick. Tony is a good boyfriend. That's it. That's the fic.
Relationships: Tony Stark/Bruce Wayne
Series: eccentric superhero boyfriends [18]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/55704
Comments: 10
Kudos: 157





	all the small things

Tony was sitting on a fancy chair in a fancy restaurant in a fancy part of town having lunch with Pepper when the call came. The redhead stopped talking, reaching for her glass of wine while he fished his phone out of his pocket. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips when he saw the caller's ID.

"Genius billionaire philanthropist speaking."

"Tony."

He frowned. It was just one word, and yet he was able to detect right away a strange ring in Bruce's voice he didn't like.

"Hey, cupcake. What's up?"

"I just called to let you know I wouldn't be flying to Malibu tonight after all," Bruce croaked, even after he cleared his throat before speaking.

Fuck, something was definitely wrong here. Tony thought back on the news he had read about Gotham today, but he couldn't think of anything of relevance mentioned. Hell, they chatted via Skype just yesterday and he didn't notice anything wrong. Besides, JARVIS would have let him know if there was something big he missed. 

It had been a long month since the last time they found the time to meet in person, so they had been looking forward to spending a long weekend together. And it seemed none of it was going to happen now.

"What? Why? What happened? Are you okay?"

There was an audible exhale at the other end of the line- probably a laugh. "It's nothing serious. I just caught a nasty cold."

Tony blinked. Okay, he hadn't expected that. It was ridiculous, really, how he--both of them, really--tended to go to the extremes rather than even contemplate the simplest, more ordinary alternatives like normal and sane people. Like Bruce having a cold rather than Batman being dosed with fear toxin or taken down by a dozen thugs.

But, back to the current issue: "That's what you got for spending the whole night out in the pouring rain watching Cobblepot and his men, isn't it?"

"Alfred told me the same thing," Bruce admitted with a groan.

The billionaire shook his head in response to Pepper's concerned look and mouthed the word 'sick'. "Yes, well. Alfie is a very wise man who never holds back from telling you when you're an idiot." He leaned back in his chair, relaxed now that he was sure it was nothing serious. "And, how are you feeling?"

"I'm okay," Bruce replied, his voice a whisper.

He snorted. "Right. I'm gonna translate that to 'I'm miserable and I feel like crap."

Tony smiled when he heard the sound of Bruce's quiet laugh through the phone, but that didn't last long. The laugh soon turned into a coughing fit that lasted long enough to make him feel unease and left his own throat hurting in sympathy.

"You okay?" He asked once the cough had subsided.

"Yeah," He croaked. "Hang on."

Before Tony had the time reply he heard background noises as Bruce put the phone aside. He was almost sure he heard the clicking of glass and Tony imagined the other man was drinking some water to relieve his dry throat. He reached for his glass of wine and finished it in one gulp.

"Alright, I'm back." His voice sounded better now, but not by much.

"Look, why don't you try to get some sleep?" Tony suggested brightly. "I mean, you can't feel like shit if you're unconscious, right?"

Bruce sighed softly. "If only. But I guess you're right."

"Correction, I'm always right. Now go to sleep, sweet cheeks. I'll see you soon."

"M'kay," The word was followed by a yawn.

"Love you."

"You too," Bruce murmured before he ended the call.

"Bruce is sick?" Pepper asked as soon as he put his phone away, worry clouding her blue eyes.

Tony blinked at her. "Yeah. He's got a cold."

"Oh. He must be having a terrible time, then." She added with a sympathetic expression.

Tony hummed distractedly, his mind already busy thinking about what he could do to make Bruce feel better.

* * *

It was dark by the time Bruce woke up next feeling groggy and disoriented, the soft light from the lamp on the bedside table the only thing keeping the bedroom from total darkness.

He had no idea what time it was. Alfred had confiscated his phone along with any other electronic device that had been in his bedroom after finding him reading emails on his phone when he entered the bedroom last. Even when he knew he had been sleeping most of the day, Bruce didn't bother to do anything other than close his eyes again and curl deeper under the covers. He had been alternating between pushing the covers away and burying under them, and right now he was freezing.

Bruce felt worse than he had when he went to sleep. His head was pounding even harder and the nasal congestion and dryness of his throat were driving him crazy. He probably was due another dose of whatever medicine Alfred was making him take, but he didn't even have the energy to try to call out for the butler. It didn't matter. Alfred was bound to come back to check on him at some point.

He must have dozed a little because he was even more disoriented than before when he was startled awake by a noise somewhere in the bedroom.

"Al?" He rasped without even opening his eyes.

"Nope. Try again, sweet cheeks."

Bruce blinked slowly, pulling the covers away from his face. "Tony?"

He barely caught the sound of soft footsteps approaching before the other billionaire was hovering over him.

"The one and only. Damn. You look even more awful than you sounded on the phone," Tony commented as he looked down at the sweaty and miserable man lying on the bed. "Are you sure it's just a cold?"

"Hmm, thanks," Bruce croaked, squinting up at him in the light pouring through the open door. He could imagine what a sight he must make right now and barely resist the urge to wince. Or maybe pull the covers over his face again and tell Tony to go away. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you, obviously."

"Why?" He tried to hold back a cough, not wanting to aggravate his headache, but it was useless. It was not only his head, but his whole aching body that was affected as the coughing fit took over him. Bruce untangled the covers further and lifted a hand to his chest.

"You okay?"

He groaned in reply, trying to get his elaborate breathing to some semblance of control.

"If you must know, I came to help Alfie," Tony said, giving reply to the previous question as he watched him with a frown. "We both know you're a terrible patient, Brucie, so good ol' Alfie needs all the help he can get."

Bruce shot a glare in his direction, but give up two seconds later when the effort to maintain it became too much.

Alfred stepped into the bedroom a moment later, holding a tray on his hands.

"Good, you're awake." The butler said softly as he walked closer to the bed. "It's time for your antibiotics, sir."

Tony took the tray without a word and put it in the bedside table as Alfred helped Bruce sit up, arranging the pillows behind his back as the ill man rubbed his eyes with a fist. Alfred handed him a full glass of water and a couple of pills, which Bruce proceeded to swallow before handing the empty glass back.

The butler put a cold hand against the hot skin of Bruce's forehead, pushing the sweaty hair away. "I shall be back with some warm broth for you in a bit."

Bruce grimaced at the thought of food but said nothing as Alfred took the tray and turned to Tony.

"Please do try your utmost keep him in bed, Mister Stark."

"Sure thing, Alfie," Tony replied with a smirk.

Alfred left with one last look at Bruce and a nod in Tony's direction, closing the door behind him.

Tony walked away from the bed too but he didn’t leave the room. He grabbed something from the sofa at the other side of the room and then climbed into bed at his side, lying on top of the covers.

"Alright," He said, sitting with his back against the wooden headboard and allowing Bruce to see the book he was holding.

"What are you-"

"Shush now, cupcake. I'm going to read to you now, so it's quite time for you."

Bruce opened and closed his mouth several times before speaking. "You don't have to do that."

"I know," Tony replied simply and opened the book.

He stared at the other man, wondering if maybe he was dreaming or even hallucinating due to a high fever. Tony wasn't heartless by any stretch of the imagination, but he was also not the kind of person to sit at the bedside of someone sick and read to them. Or was he?

Bruce was pulled out of his thoughts by the sound of Tony's voice as it filled the bedroom, making a small, tired smile tug at the corner of his lips. Bruce remained motionless for a moment, not wanting to break the spell that had been cast in the bedroom as soon as Tony stepped in. It was his exhaustion that finally forced him to move, and after a moment's pause he closed the space that separated them and snuggled up against Tony's warm body, resting his head on the other man's chest.

Hazel eyes blinked open when Bruce felt the soft pressure of a kiss on his sweaty forehead and then closed again.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! I know it's been a long time since I've been around, but I kind of lost inspiration to write along the way and have not written anything in years. I found this along with several other finished or almost finished drafts I wrote back then while I was sorting through my documents, and since the whole pandemic mess gave me plenty of free time I decided to clean them up a bit and post them. I hope someone out there enjoys them!
> 
> I'm sorry to say I have no plans to go back to any of my unfinished fics. Right now I'm just planning to post what I already have written, but I guess we'll see what happens. Also, I want to give a huge, huge thank you to anyone who has read, commented, or bookmarked my fics in the last couple of years! It was wonderful to come back to so many comments in my inbox. 😊
> 
> The title from the song of the same name by Blink 212.
> 
> This is unbetaed and I'm not a native speaker, so please feel free to point out any mistake you may find.


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